Coating of surfaces with liquids by spraying



May 18, 19 3- F. F1 SCHWARTZ. arm.

COATING OF SURFACES WITH LIQUIDS BY SPRAYING Filed June 21,1938

2 sne'ets-shen 1 May 1943" F. .F. SCHWARTZ EI'ZAL 2,319,353

COATING OF SURFACES WITH LIQUIDS BY SPRAYING Filed June 21, 1938 2 Sheets-Shed 2 Fig.3 Fig. .4 Fig.2

l N V E N TO RS Fmvmo Fame/4 MARC 04mm Cannon/ts ATTORNEYS Pnemesmy 1a, 1943 25319353 UNlTED- STATES PATENT OFFICE-1' I I comma or sm t rigggrv rrn mourns air Fernand Frederic Schwartz and Marc Alfred Chavannea, Paris, France, asalgnors, by meme assignments, to Eela Patents Corporation, New

York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application June 21, 1938, Serial No. 214,918 In France July 2, 1937 This invention is for improvements in or relating to the spraying of liquids and has particular reference to the treatment of fabric or other surfaces which can, be moved past the spraying device. Such a process is described in United States patent specification Serial No. 162,892. In that specification a process is described in which a fabric is sprayed with rubber latex and is immediately passed to a drying chamber and is duced independently of the spraying device along said conduit in the direction of motion of the surface so as to maintain'the said surface in contact with the mist of the sprayed liquid which 6 Claims. (Cl. l17106) is not deposited during the spraying operation 55 itself. 'I'he,conduit may be provided along its length with air inlets and with baiiies for directing the current of mist-laden air into contact with the sprayed surface passing through the conduit. I

The chamber containing ,the spraying means may be provided with an air inlet so arranged that droplets of the liquid which are not deposited on the surface of the fabric during spraythereafter returned after drying to the spraying Icing are prevented by the" incoming air from chamber. being deposited on the walls or floor of the spray- It has been found that there may with adin: chamber itself.

vantage be'combined with a spraying chamber a The conduit may be inclined to the horizontal chamber or enclosed space along which any parand the surface to he spl y d y he oved ticles of liquid not deposited immediately on the along the lower part oi. the conduit in order surface being sprayed are carried by means of a that globules of liquid may be deposited upon current of gas, e. g. air in contact with the h S f y r vi y as h Surface P s sprayed surface. throughthe conduit.

It is an object of the present invention to Apparatus f r oat a fl xible material such renderthe process of treating surfaces with liq- 20 as a fabric in accordance with the present inuids and in particular fabrics with latex, e. g. V l n m y c n of a sprayin chamber, a rubber latex more economical and effective by conduit adjacent to the sprayin h m e a minimising losses of liquid during spraying. drying chamber and an endless conveyor ar- It has been found that this result may be r sed to sup he m rial to be coated and achieved by maintaining the surface after spray- 2 to circulate n n sly hr h he p yin ing in contact with a current of gas, e. g. air h m er, h Said conduit and the S id drying introduced into the spraying chamber indeh mber in turn. pendently of the spraying device in order that In an alternative method of carrying the inslobules of liquid suspended inthe air in the vention into effect, a flexible surface, e. g. of spraying chamber may have an opportunity of fabric, 18 supported n a n y r P sing round de iti from th h- On t t surface pulleys so amused that the fabric itself con- The present invention accordingly comprises ti at least h l P r of a D 11 1 D- a method of coating a surface with liquid which. Desite wells of e conduit in i h d pos tion on i t in spraying th liquid n th i of the suspended globules of liquid takes place. face and thereafter moving the sprayed surface h h c nveyor with its fabric attached may i an e l space in t t t t gaseous be bent back on itself so that the surfaces of suspension formed of droplets of t spraying the fabric face each other, one surface (namely liquid which are not deposited on the said surthat leaving the Spraying v moving in face during ing, th i suspension being one direction and the other surfacemoving in carried along the enclosed space by means of a the Opposite direetiehcurrent of a gas introduced independently of the The leheth o t conduit formed by the fabric spraying d vi 4 may beincreased without unduly increasing the T liquid t be sprayed may consist of size of the whole apparatus by causing the conber latex and it may be applied to the surface 7 to follow first a B n ned to the of mu-1 vertical and then a horizontal path, the con- Appgratus for carrying out the spraying proc- V6301 bending back On itself both in-its iness may include means for spraying a surface 0111186 and r zon a pa hswith liquid, a conduit through which said sur- A pa atus f r arryin out the method aboveface is passed after leaving the spraying means described i udes n endless nv yor to which and means for passing a gas such as air introthe r 8- a f r c urface. to be coated by spraying is secured, spraying means, e. g. a spray gun or spraying guns and a drying chamber, the conveyor bending back on itself after leaving the spraying means so that .the fabric constitutes the major part of the walls of a conduit receiving the mist-laden air from the spray guns and subsequently passing through the drying chamber and thence back'to the spray guns. The rate of travel of the conveyor is such that one coating of liquid is dried before a second coating of liquid is applied.

Following is a description by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings of two methods of carrying the invention into eifect'in the application of rubber latex in the form of a spray to the surface of a fabric.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of one form of spraying apparatus, the spraying chamber and the conduit being shown in section;

Figure 2 is a front elevation of the spraying chamber and its conduit; Figure 3 is an end view of the apparatus at the end opposite to the spraying chamber;

' Figure 4 is a detailed view on a larger scale of a portion of one of the chains, and i Figure 5 is a sectional side elevation of an alternative form of apparatus.

Similar references denote similar throughout the figures of the drawings. The apparatus comprises a spraying chamber P, a tunnel or conduit C constituting a precipitation chamber and a drier S.

The fabric to be sprayed is fixed on a conveyor constiuted by two parallel endless chains (1, Figure 3, in which each link carries a small plate b, (Figure 4) provided with needle points c which are engaged in the edges of the fabric in a manner known in other processes for the treatment of fabrics.

Pinions d,-e, and f (teeth not shown) support and drive the chains and retain the fabric at its correct width, these pinions being arranged so as parts I to slide longitudinally on their spindles and the two pinions of each pair being continuously kept apart by springs such as a, Figure 3, so as to maintain the fabric at its full width.

As shown in Figure 1 chains 0 pass from the pinions f to driving pinions i after passing through the spraying chamber P and the precipitation tunnel C; they then enter the drier S where they pass round a series of return pinions, 7 :i, ii. k Id, In (Figure 1). The chains then pass through an aperture 1 (Figure 3) and pass to the outside of the apparatus, around supporting pinions d and e and thence to the pinions 1.

Referring to Figure 1, certain of the spindles carrying the pinions in the drier may be mounted so as to apply tension to the chains by the action, for example, of weights or springs such as n.

In passing throughthe spraying chamber the fabric is supported on an endless felt support m which passes over rqllersconcentric with the pinions f and i and over reversing rollers m and m. This supporting felt is driven at the same speed as the chains.

The spraying chamber is provided with a narrow aperture 0 for the entry of the fabric and with doors 0 and windows 0* for observing the spraying operation. Air inlet openings 1: are made in the doors and in the fixed panels 0 and are provided with regulating means, for example,

in the form of flaps q for the introduction, e. g. by means of a fan, of a current of air independently of the spraying device. The spray-guns r are mounted on rods 8 and are so arranged that they can be adjusted from the outside of the chamber and may be given either a longitudinal or rotary movement.

The conduit C is provided with a series of openings t with regulating throttles u. Bames t deflect the currents of air entering the conduit against the fabric. The upper extremity of the conduit is connected to a suction pipe 17 passing into the open air.

Hot air for the drying step of the process delivered by a fan mounted in a box m, Figure 2, which passes air through steam radiators and thence through conduits 1! into the drier. The air leaving the drying chamber is passed to a conduit v In treating a web of fabric T this is laid on a tentering cylinder z and one end of the fabric is placed between a cylinder it (Figure 3) .concentric with the pinions e and another cylinder h pressed against the first. Care is taken to place the edges of the fabric on the needle points of the links which are under the pinions e, the chains being moved at a moderate speed during this operation and the fabric being drawn along with the chains. Its edges are pressed against the needle points of the links by brushes 2 and the fabric thus comes into the machine stretched over the whole development of the chain.

The web of fabric treated may conveniently be of the same length as the chain, the ends of the web being temporarily connected together by clips or by sewing. If desired, webs of fabric of smaller lengththan the chain may be treated. In applying a spray of rubber latex to the fabric, the fabric circulates in a continuous manner in the closed circuit and receives a thin coating of atomised latex. Each coating is dried before the application of a subsequent coating and the number of coatings may be increased in accordance with the thickness of rubber required.

When the necessary thickness has bene applied the fabric is rolled-upon the roller n which is driven by the roller 71. (Figures 1 and 3).

When two fabrics are to be stuck together they are passed into a doubling machine of known type and the fabrics may if necessary be treated.

with vapours of a rubber solvent and then calis rubber latex.

Depositions of latex on the bottom of the spraying chamber P is prevented by the currents of air entering the chamber independently of the spraying device through 9 as shown by the arrow I. The suspended globules of liquid are carried into the conduit C and are here met by currents of air entering through the openings t, as indicated by arrows 2, and in this way are projectedagainst the fabric and deposited thereon.

By arranging that the conduit is inclined to the horizontal the particles carried along it have a tendency to deposit on the fabric by gravity, and this effect is accelerated by the openings t and the baflles t.

An advantage of the present invention is that the liquid such as latex may be sprayed in a much finer mist than formerly and a more even distribution of liquid on the fabric is thus obtained.

Referring to Figure5, any convenient number of spray-guns 1', arranged in two or. more rows are supplied with latex. The spray-guns project through the wall of the chamber P and project a spray of latex on to the fabric T, which is secured to an endless conveyor consisting of a pair of chains provided with pins as shown in Figure 4. These chains are supported on pinions carried by shafts I, 2, 3,4,16,11,18, 9', 8" l0, ll I2, I: and I4.

The fabric after passing before the spray-guns passes over the pulleys 2,3, 4 and 5 to form a loop the interior of which forms a conduit or precipitation chamber for the particles of latex. This conduit consists of an inclined portion followed by a horizontal portion at the top of the apparatus. This arrangement makes it possible to provide a comparatively long conduit without unduly increasing the size of the apparatus. Behind the fabricfixed walls 1, i i, i are provided defining the size of the conduit. Those particles of latex which are not deposited on the fabric at the time of spraying are retained in the conduit and are carried along the conduit by meansof a current of air towards the opening I! and conduit l8.

' The globules of latex are thus deposited on the fabric and the loss of latex is reduced to a minimum.

The conduit may consist of several successive loops of fabric and may consist, for example, of a series of inclined and horizontal portions in order to increase the total length of the conduit the latex is applied to the fabric in a series of coatings as described in United States patent in certain cases thedrier may be omitted.

We claim:

1. A method of coating the high points of a surface of a sheet of fabric with a liquid which comprises directing the liquid toward said surface of the fabric in finely divided form, moving the said surface after the application of liquid thereto in a direction intermediate the horizontal and vertical in an enclosed space in contact with a gaseous suspension formed of droplets of the liquid which have not been deposited on the said surface, and causing the said suspension to be carried along in the enclosed space with the sheet material.

2. Apparatus for coating a surface of a web of flexible material with a liquidinthe form of a finely divided spray which comprises a spraying chamber, means therein for producing a fine spray of liquid an elongated enclosed space forming an extension of said spraying chamber disposed at least in part at an acute angle to the horizontal, means for carrying into said enclosed space the gaseous suspension of liquid particles not deposited on the fabric in the spraying chamber and a conveyor supporting the web of flexible material and carrying it through the spraying chamber and the extension thereof.

3. Apparatus for coating a surface of a web of fabric with rubber latex in the form of a finely divided spray which comprises a spraying chamber, means therein for producing a fine spray of liquid, a conduit forming an extension of said spraying chamber, means including adjustable openings in the wall of said conduit for maintaining a current of air in said conduit away from the spraying chamber, baflles for directing the air onto the surface of the fabric to which the latex has been applied, an endless conveyor to which the web of fabric is attached, and means for circulating said conveyor through the spraying chamber, and the extension thereof.

, 4. Apparatus for coating a surface of a web of fabric with rubber latex in the form of a finely divided spray which comprises a spraying chamber, means therein for producing a fine spray of liquid a conduit forming an extension of said spraying chamber, means for maintaining a current of air from the spraying chamber through the extension thereof, an endless conveyor to which the web of fabric is attached circulating through the spraying chamber and the extension thereof, and means for supporting and guiding said conveyor so as to form a loop in the extension of the spraying chamber; said loop constituting the major portion of the walls of said extension of the spraying chamber,

5. Apparatus for coating a surface of a web of fabric with a liquid in the form of a finely divided spray which comprises a spraying chamber, means therein for producing a fine spray of liquid, a conduit forming an extension of said spraying chamber and disposed at least in part at an acute angle to the horizontal, means for maintaining a current of air from the spraying chamber to the extension thereof, and means for supporting, guiding and advancing the web of fabric in such a way as to form a loop in said extension serving to provide a movingsurface for a portion of the walls of said conduit.

6. Apparatus for coating a surface of a web of fabric with rubber latex inthe form of a finely divided spray which comprises spraying means, means for so supporting, guiding and advancing the fabric as to form a conduit adjacent said spraying means and enclosing the discharge ends thereof, said conduit consisting of an inclined portion and a horizontal portion-the major portion of two opposite longitudinal walls whereof are constituted by the fabric which has been sprayed, and a fiue associated with said conduit for maintaining a current of air from the spraying means 7 through the said conduit.

FERNAND FREDERIC SCHWARTZ. MARC ALFRED CHAVANNES. 

